You are here

News Release

Contact

According to the Arizona PIRG Education Fund, Americans stand to breathe more polluted air as a result of a rollback announced today by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the National Highway Traffic and Safety Administration. EPA Acting Administrator Andrew Wheeler proposed to roll back the “Clean Car” fuel economy standards which, if left in place, would eliminate more than two billion metric tons of emissions. The proposal would also deny states the right to create their own more efficient fuel standards.

More than a third of U.S. auto buyers live in the 13 states plus Washington, D.C. that have already adopted Clean Car standards requiring vehicles to have stronger emission controls. For states, such as Arizona, that don’t currently have the Clean Cars Standard, Diane E. Brown, Executive Director of the Arizona PIRG Education Fund, said it is just as important for more stringent federal standards to remain in place.

“The federal fuel efficiency standard has proven beneficial to consumer pocketbooks, the economy, air quality, and public health,” stated Brown. “The federal fuel efficiency standard should continue down the road of increased savings at the gas pump not be halted and thrown into reverse.”